On Wednesday, the cabinet approved the new electoral law, which will be based on proportional representation and 15 electoral districts, replacing the winner-takes-all system for the first time in the country's history.

Parliamentary elections are slated to be held in May 2018. The sitting parliament has extended its own term three times since it originally expired in 2013.

The dispute among Lebanese political leaders over the new law has threatened to plunge the country into a political crisis and leave it without a parliament for the first time.

Political analyst Paul Mancos told Al Jazeera the law is a "step forward, but not enough in order to have real and fair representation".

The current term of the parliament, which has been extended twice since it was elected in 2009, was due to expire on June 20.

The law, which introduces a so-called "preferential vote" system, will replace an old, sectarian-based law passed in 1960.

In October 2016, Lebanon's parliament elected President Michel Aoun after a 29-month power vacuum that grew out of bickering between the political factions.